It Can't Happen Here

The primary theme of the book is American totalitarianism, which is broken into several sub-themes. The first of these sub-themes is that it’s possible for totalitarianism to take hold in America, in contrast to many characters who argue that it is not. From there, the primary themes are the rise of totalitarian governments, how such governments operate, and their internal contradictions.

The book argues that American totalitarianism is likely to be the product of a charismatic con-man and skilled orator who is able to channel popular dissatisfaction with existing politics-as-usual in times of crisis in order to propel himself and a close cabal of advisors to a position of power. Times of economic crisis allow legitimate grievances to be channeled by opportunistic candidates if they are not addressed by the existing political establishment.

Throughout the book, Lewis argues that class resentment is a crucial component of support for a would-be fascist, as represented by the character of Shad Ledue. Another aspect of support for the rise of totalitarianism in the book is resentment and discrimination along racial, religious, and gender lines. African-Americans, Jewish people, and women are all singled out as targets by Windrip on the campaign trail, which helps him build support by promising to roll back the clock to an earlier era, when these groups had fewer rights. The theme of individualism is also shown to be a component as many people vote for Windrip in the belief that he will make them materially better off. Lower-class characters vote for Windrip due to his promise of a guaranteed income of $5,000 per year, while wealthier characters believe that Windrip is the only one who can restore American capitalism to its former glory, which they believe will in turn enrich them.

When American totalitarianism is fully consolidated, a key theme is the casual cruelty and violence inherent to such forms of government. This is represented by Windrip’s Minute Men, who are frequently shown to enjoy their acts of violence, torture, and cultural destruction. Another sub-theme is how totalitarian governments utilize propaganda to control the flow of information. Universities, newspapers, radio stations, and other media organizations are quickly brought under the control of the government and are used to tell the population that everything is improving, while covering up the crimes carried out by the administration. However, once the propaganda apparatus starts to become less successful at containing dissent, another sub-theme is how totalitarian governments then turn to violence and repression to control their populations.

Finally, the book argues that totalitarianism is inherently contradictory and unstable. In contrast to Windrip’s promise to restore the glory of the American economy, his regime mismanages the country to such a degree that the economy suffers near-collapse, leading to breadlines and starvation. In addition, because totalitarian regimes are based around the total control of a small group of people, they lead to infighting that results in frequent coups and political instability. This is shown in the text as Windrip becomes increasingly paranoid and is eventually overthrown by his closet advisor, Sarason, who is in turn overthrown by Colonel Haik. Finally, a totalitarian regime’s emphasis on nationalism, conflict, and violence is also shown to be a key source of instability. While some who lose friends and family are cowed into submission, many others (as represented by Mary Jessup) are instead inspired to take up arms against the regime. More broadly speaking, when Haik attempts to start a war with Mexico by re-instituting the draft, he instead creates an armed rebellion against himself.